Communication: noun - the act or process of using words, sounds, signs, or behaviors to express or exchange information or to express your ideas, thoughts, feelings, etc., to someone else
You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can't get them across, your ideas won't get you anywhere. - Lee Iacocca
In the purest and deepest ideals of communication, it is easy to recognize the importance of being able to communicate with another soul. We often live within the confines our own mind, reading, thinking and processing information to build ideas. Epiphanies, relationships, beliefs, intents and worlds can be created within the mind, but until these concepts are brought forth into the physical realm, nothing is experienced as real. "There is the world inside the brain and the world outside the brain. We must bring them to terms with each other if we are to learn." (Zull) This sentence sums up my understanding of the learning cycle perfectly. I understand the many ways to communicate, but the importance of communication with language is magnified in the school setting. As teachers, we are full of language. Most of us have spent a good portion of our lives in school and have an unspoken understanding of all the nuances school and communication bring. We develop relationships with each other and students, we communicate our material through directions and examples, we are constantly demonstrating and communicating how WE are as people just by being. In my mind, I have an important responsibility to the young individuals who come into my life to learn. Because I have had so many years of practice communicating in so many different ways, and have been entrusted as a "teacher", I have a responsibility to be clear with my agendas and expectations. My clarity helps students in their clarity. Additionally, my clarity in communication helps students understand the expectations I hold as a teacher to help them understand and engage themselves as learners. This is the foundation of building a safe and trusting student teacher relationship. When students understand us, and we are able to meet the expectations of our students as teachers, we are then better able to help students access the information and develop the skills they need to help create our future.
You can have brilliant ideas, but if you can't get them across, your ideas won't get you anywhere. - Lee Iacocca
In the purest and deepest ideals of communication, it is easy to recognize the importance of being able to communicate with another soul. We often live within the confines our own mind, reading, thinking and processing information to build ideas. Epiphanies, relationships, beliefs, intents and worlds can be created within the mind, but until these concepts are brought forth into the physical realm, nothing is experienced as real. "There is the world inside the brain and the world outside the brain. We must bring them to terms with each other if we are to learn." (Zull) This sentence sums up my understanding of the learning cycle perfectly. I understand the many ways to communicate, but the importance of communication with language is magnified in the school setting. As teachers, we are full of language. Most of us have spent a good portion of our lives in school and have an unspoken understanding of all the nuances school and communication bring. We develop relationships with each other and students, we communicate our material through directions and examples, we are constantly demonstrating and communicating how WE are as people just by being. In my mind, I have an important responsibility to the young individuals who come into my life to learn. Because I have had so many years of practice communicating in so many different ways, and have been entrusted as a "teacher", I have a responsibility to be clear with my agendas and expectations. My clarity helps students in their clarity. Additionally, my clarity in communication helps students understand the expectations I hold as a teacher to help them understand and engage themselves as learners. This is the foundation of building a safe and trusting student teacher relationship. When students understand us, and we are able to meet the expectations of our students as teachers, we are then better able to help students access the information and develop the skills they need to help create our future.